An Act He Can't Believe
by Formastory
Summary: First Fanfic: All is going well for Hattori Heiji, not a case in sight and he was glad. Glad because cases shouldn't happen right before going to see his buddy Kudo Shinichi, a.k.a. Edogawa Conan. Expecting a case today to pop up around him was the exciting part, but today he would experience something he wasn't prepared for.
**Hello, this is my first fanfic that I have written for Detective Conan. I wanted to get a little bit of it out there, just to see how the reaction would be. I'm still a beginning writer and am not as good with story telling yet, but hopefully will grow with practice. So, here you go, here's my first story, well half of it. It's suppose to be a one-shot but I haven't figured out a proper middle as of yet. My beginning and end were thought out but not the middle. Please let me know what you think? Thank you very much.**

Summary: All is going well for Hattori Heiji, not a case in sight and he was glad. Glad because cases shouldn't happen right before going to see his buddy Kudo Shinichi, or better known as his secret identity as Edogawa Conan. Expecting a case today to pop up around him was the exciting part, but today the case wasn't at all he was expecting. The door to the Mouri Detective Agency opened up and the greeting he was not expecting.

-Break-

Hattori Heiji, detective of the west, son of the chief of the Osakan police, force, and a skillful kendo fighter. Call him what you want, he was not being any of those titles today, for here he was, just a visitor here in the Tokyo on his way to the Mouri Detective Agency in Beika. Walking with a spring to his step, one can easily tell that he was excited and eager to get to his destination. Now why was he here exactly? The simple answer was out of boredom, Osaka had been a little too peaceful as of late and no major events were happening around him to get his excitement going.

As it was a few days ago, Heiji had already planned to visit the Mouri's because he wanted to tag along on a free day as well as to catch up with his buddy Kudo Shinichi, being called under his pseudo identity Edogawa Conan. Kudo and he were great friends and rivals when it came to detective work, this always made the Osakan's adrenalin rush with every mystery they solved. In all, Heiji believed that hanging around Kudo was never a dull moment and anything could happen. This particular visit was simply because he wanted to be there, to catch up and just see how everyone was doing, and possibly to help out on a case that may be bugging Kudo. His dear childhood friend Toyama Kazuha wished to come, but an Aikido tournament was taking place on the day Heiji was to be in Tokyo. So she sent her regards to the Mouris and also reminded Heiji to hold onto his special omamori since she believed as long as it was in his possession, nothing could go wrong.

At long last, he arrived at the steps of the detective agency. His long awaited day was slowly looking to become an interesting day with Kudo around. But little did Heiji know, there was a great shock awaiting that he would not be mentally prepared to handle. Quickening his step, he walked up the stairs past the agency and up to the door of the Mouri apartment. Eagerly, he rang the door bell *ring *ring *ring, the door bell went off. A feminine voice could be heard from the other side asking "Conan-kun, could you get the door please?" That must have been Nee-chan, Heiji thought. A young chirpy voice was heard respond with a "Hai Ran-nee-chan!" Footsteps running toward the door, the doorknob clicking unlocked, and the sound of the doorknob turning got Heiji excited. As the door opened, a little bespectacled, bright blue eyes boy stared right at Heiji. Not being able to contain his excitement, Heiji exclaimed "Yo Kudo! How're you doing?" Instead of the annoyed look and the scolding tone he was so use to getting for slipping up his name, silence met the Osakan which puzzled him greatly. "Hey, Kudo, what gives? You're usually scolding me for messin up or something?" Again silence was met by the detective, and for the first time he looked at the boy's face. No trace of an annoyed look or a hint of wanting to outburst, instead he saw bewilderment in the child's face and curiosity. Finally Kudo spoke and asked "Heiji-nii, why do you keep calling me Kudo?" "Oi tell me you're joking Kudo, ha ha very funny." Heiji responded jokingly. But again, nothing, no sign of him dropping the act. Finally he replied "Heiji-nii, I'm not Shinichi-nii-chan, he's off on an important case, I'm Conan, Co-nan." Heiji wasn't falling for it, but after looking at his face, he really could not see any falter in the boy's act, so Heiji panicked and thought 'Kudo, what is wrong with you?'

His thoughts were racing, thinking up every possible reason that Conan was saying the things he was saying. He was interrupted by a voice, "Conan-kun, who was at the door?" in which Conan replied "It's Heiji-nii-chan Ran-nee-chan." That was it, Heiji thought, the reason that his buddy was acting the way he was is because Ran might have been suspicious. So thinking that was the answer, he readjusted himself to face her and the possibility he may be cornered into answering questions about Conan being Shinichi. As soon as he saw Ran, he greeted her gleefully "Yo Nee-chan, how've you been?" A look of shock was on her face as she saw that Heiji just came right out of the blue. "Hattori-kun? This is a surprise, what are you doing over here?" Heiji looked and gave a puzzled look, "Dont'cha remember? I actually gave a call saying I'd stop by." Ran looked and then finally realized, she had forgotten that he did call and now was a little embarrassed to admit it. "I can see by how you're looking at me, you probably forgot, it's cool." Heiji said with a smile.

Some time passed, and Heiji ended up eating breakfast with Ran and Conan. Kogoro wasn't there this time around, Ran had told him that he went off to meet some old friends and he left Ran and Conan to themselves. This did disappoint the Osakan but his spirits were lifted when he thought about the situation Conan was in. Still convinced that Ran was suspicious he did his best to treat Conan like the child he appeared to be and did his best to avoid using Kudo. But the one time he did slip up, again he received no response from his friend, only a black stare and a puzzled look. Heiji thought that he must be really struggling to keep his act up and is probably ready to explode and to want to be himself. "Oi, Nee-chan, mind if I take Ku…Conan out?" he asked. "Oh sure, I was going to just take him grocery shopping with me today since his friends aren't around today. He would have been bored, but since you're here, you can keep him company." Ran replied. He accepted, and so right after breakfast, Ran told Conan to get dressed so he could go out and spend the day with his Heiji-nii-chan.

While Conan was dressing up, Heiji waited for him by the exit. It was then Heiji noticed something about the shoes, now normally his shoes were white and red sneakers and had a special design of a circle, secretly a dial, which was used to boost the power of kicking. But for some reason, the knob wasn't present on either of his shoes, they were just plain red and white. There were no circles on them anywhere, but before he could get to further investigating, a voice called out "Heiji-nii-chan, I'm almost ready to go, I just need to get my shoes on!" Heiji just nodded and watched as he put on his shoes and said bye to Ran. Seemed that today, Conan was going for one of his more causal outfits, the basic shirt and shorts and his sneakers. But he noticed once again something was off, but what it was he couldn't place just what was wrong. Letting it slide for a minute, he thought he'd just ask Kudo when they were away from the agency and he could act more like his usual self. He really was wondering about the reason his buddy was acting the way he was and why he felt things were just so off from his usual expectations. So by the time Heiji and Conan were out, he was preparing himself to ask a lot of questions.

It had been some time since they left the Mouri Detective Agency and neither one of them said a word to each other. Heiji was anticipating for Kudo to break the silence and tell him what the deal was, why he's acting like that, and the reason he was so bold as to question him about why he called Kudo instead of Conan. Even while being a great distance away from the agency and closer to the park, Kudo still had yet to break the silence. That's when Heiji noticed for the first time that he was walking with a spring to his step, a wide childish grin was plastered on his face, and if his ears were working, he thought he heard soft humming coming from Kudo which was weird since he wasn't one for having a tune. Observing further, he looked at the little details that were bugging him at the detective agency. First were the shoes, there was no sign of the little dials that enhanced his shoes for a powerful kick. The next thing he noticed as his eyes traveled up were his pockets. Now normally there would be two bulges on the side pockets, what was usually inside were his Conan phone and his Kudo phone, the one used for calling Nee-chan and sometimes his parents. But seeing his side pockets, there was only one bulge that was the shape of his phone, now where could the other one have gone? Noticing his arms next, which were swinging back and forth at each step, his arms were rather bare of his usual watch. Where had the watch gone was the question that was on Heiji's mind. Immediately thinking it still had to do with Nee-chan's suspicions, he thought that maybe he was trying to hide his stuff from her while being under her suspicions. That was a reasonable answer, but there was still a nagging feeling that there was something wrong with his line of thought. So he kept pondering this while walking.

At last they arrived at the park, Kudo looked especially happy to be there. Finally, it was time for answers and Heiji was going to keep on pressing until he got some. "Hey Kudo, let's go over to the bench first and chat a bit, we have a lot to catch up on." Kudo looked up as if he wasn't sure of something, but then he nodded and gave Heiji a big smile. As they sat on the bench, Heiji stared at Conan for awhile and waited for him to speak. He was looking fidgety under Heiji's stare, and finally spoke "Umm, Heiji-nii-chan, why are you staring at me like that?" "Hey Kudo, come on, you can drop the act now and tell me what's going on." Waiting for him an answer, Conan got distracted and pointed at the ice cream cart "Ne, Heiji-nii, let's go get some ice cream first." Again his childish voice still didn't drop and Conan was pushing Heiji toward the cart all the while, he was protesting. When they reached the cart, Conan told him the flavor he really wanted, and said that his Nii-chan was treating him. Again he was going to protest, but the ice cream vendor gave the ice cream to Conan. So he paid for the ice cream while muttering to himself that Kudo is going to pay for that later.

For the rest of the day, it seemed to be that every time Heiji had a moment to relax and ask the for the response to the question he asked, Conan kept bringing him everywhere around the park. He started with the ice cream, then it went to a chase around the park, and then it went to a soccer match by a bunch of random children who asked him to play, and finally it was the playground. The playground of all things, since when was Kudo this hyper and why was he keeping up his childish act. It didn't make any sense until he started thinking of all the pieces that felt off since he first saw his little buddy today. Thinking back, he thought it was strange that he had a blank stare and didn't try to shush him when he said Kudo instead of Conan, Ran didn't seem to have any weird actions since it was sort of obvious when she was playing detective herself, then there was the fact that a lot of his usual items were missing like the dials on his shoes, the phone, the watch, and who knows if he had his bow tie somewhere on his person. A ring broke him out of his thoughts, oh looks like he got a text. Seeing the text, Conan a big and wide happy grin, one bigger than all his usual grins today. He immediately ran up to Heiji and asked, "Ne, Heiji-nii, can we go to Hakase's house now? There's a game he wanted me to try today and I forgot about it." "Ah sure, let's go." Heiji replied, but he wasn't done just yet. He was going to get to the bottom of this mystery why his friend was acting the way he was.

The walk there was filled with silence, for neither one was talking to each other. Heiji took one more time to think about something, and thought of the words Conan spoke this morning about him being Conan and not Kudo, well Shinichi-Nii. As they were getting closer to the house, he couldn't take it anymore and finally broke the silence. "Oi, Kudo, what gives? You've been pulling me around all day and taking me to all the things you normally wouldn't ever do and getting me involved in it. Come on Kudo, stop the act and tell me what is going on?" Again Conan gave the look just like he did this morning, that puzzling look, that stare of unknowing and finally he spoke, "Heiji-nii, I told you already didn't I? I'm not Shinichi-nii, I'm Conan, I'm seven years old." Heiji wasn't buying it, but seeing his eyes, they were firmly staring at him. Conan just wouldn't budge. Heiji still didn't believe it, and immediately took off his glasses. "Heiji-nii, give my glasses back please!" Conan said worriedly. "You can't keep this act up, your Kudo Shinichi, shrunk by some drug and are now Conan who has all these gadgets to help solve cases like your tracking glass…" He didn't finish his word as he saw that the glasses were just ordinary glasses with a fake lens. Growing even more worried, he looked Conan over one more time, and everything fell into place, he was gadget-less and he was claiming to be his made up self. He panicked and thought Kudo went through some identity crisis since his last visit or lost his memory of being Kudo Shinichi. Conan was acting nervous, and quickly ran toward the house in which Heiji followed.

Conan was able to get into the house easily and run into the living room. Heiji followed and caught him by the arm. "Okay, I've had it! I can't take this anymore!" Heiji yelled annoyingly while holding Conan by his arm. There was no way just no way his pal forgot who he was, he didn't want to accept this, he couldn't. He was breaking down right in from of Hakase and in front of Conan. There he was, his best buddy not acknowledging himself as Kudo Shinichi, the great detective of the east, and his best buds and rival. He was acting like a little cheerful boy, showing his smarts, and obvious to the world's problems. He was no longer the shrunken detective he knew, the one with the special gadgets like his enhanced kicking shoes, voice changing bow tie, and his special wrist watch that shoots out bit of anesthetic to make one sleep. He was acting just like a child . Worst of all, he wasn't sure what was going on and felt like he was the one who was out of place. Seeing that he was breaking down, Conan's face suddenly changed from the innocent face to a smirk. Heiji looked back onto his face, and his eyes grew wide. Taking a chance his face with a look searching for hope, he asked "Kudo?" Conan looked right back at him, and finally answered in a childish voice "Ah, it's me. April Fools Heiji-nii-chan!" Heiji's eyes grew wide once again from shock and disbelief. "But, what, huh?" His emotions were mixed, from relief to shock and a little mad that Kudo had done this to him. There he explained in his usual voice "Hattori, I actually wasn't planning on doing anything but your phone call saying you were coming just on the spur of the moment got the wheels in my head turning. Truth is, I actually got into a bet awhile back with Haibara, I don't want to talk details… Heiji interrupted, "Whadda you mean, you're not going to go into details. I want the whole story on what this bet was. I'll forgive you if you spill." Looking at his friend, Conan felt it was true, he deserved an explanation, in which he explained.

-Flashback:

Conan was impatient, he was tired of having to leave Ran in the dark so much about his predicament. Still he kept silent about that. But in this moment, his patience was going thin, for he was asking Haibara for a temporary antidote to see Ran. Of course she denied him of the privilege and reminded him that it was only rare that she was able to have a prototype antidote at the ready. She also reminded him of the dangers and the percentage rate of his demise. In his mind, he didn't think he asked her that often and his only times amounted to about less than ten in this whole year. In Haibara's mind, she was just annoyed that he was bringing up his guilt, tired of him saying he needed to see Ran and apologize. It was true that he didn't ask much, but even so the thought bothered her when the antidote and Ran's hurt came up. Finally getting annoyed of his pestering, she turned around and replied in an annoyed tone "For the last time, I'm not giving you the prototype." "Oh come on Haibara, it's not like I ask a lot. So why not just this once?" Conan asked. "First of all, I warned you about the risks. Second, I don't have one at the ready to last you as long as you need. Third and final, you're getting on my nerves just repeatedly asking me today." She answered. "Che, fine. But still, isn't there anything you can do or agree to so I can have it?" he asked pushing the idea. Haibara was about to protest, but then a mischievous thought came into her mind. "When you say 'anything' do you mean anything I can agree to?" Conan looked at her and saw that she was deep in thought while saying that, taking it as a sign of hope, he didn't hesitate and nodded. "Well Kudo-kun, before I agree to this, I'm going to have to call Hakase to be a witness to something." She replied with a smirk. Conan looked at her with worry and thought that whatever he was about to agree to, it was going to put him in a tough spot. Now he was starting to regret his words as he remembered all the times that Haibara felt she was embarrassed by him, so he immediately went to the thought of her wanting revenge.

Hakase came into the living room where Conan was sitting on the couch looking absolutely worried. It was rare to see him with such a look, but from the way Haibara called him down, something must be going on. He was unsure of what was going on when she asked him to come into the living room, but the answer became clear once Haibara spoke. "Hakase, we need you to be a witness to the event that is about to transpire right now. " Hakase focused his attention on her and nodded. She continued "Kudo-kun had asked me if there was anything I could do in order to agree to giving him a prototype of the antidote. So I am about to place my terms on the table." Conan looked at her, and then looked at Hakase, he wasn't sure what was going on in her head, but now he was about to find out. "My terms to agreeing with you to and the antidote is to place a little bet." Conan and Hakase's looked quizzically at her and they both asked "A bet?" "Yes a bet, in which I will agree to the antidote." Conan gulped, he wasn't sure what it would be, so he waited for her to continue. "I've noticed you've been overly reliant on your gadgets when it comes to your mysteries, and thought it may be helpful most of the time, you yourself need to stop all use of them." Silence filled the room for the next few seconds until he exclaimed "Ehhh!?" "You heard me, you'll be stripped of your gadgets, even the detective badge, the watch, and your glasses for a little while and the time will be until I complete a new prototype for you to use. But that's not all." "What? There's more?" "Yes, since you don't have your gadgets, you'll have to stay away from Korgoro so I can be sure you don't run into any cases that you may need him for your deduction show. Oh and because you don't have your bow tie, I'm also going to take your other phone since it's not like you'll be able to say anything with your regular voice anyway. Also, avoid the big cases with the Detective Boys that can get you into trouble. I'm asking you spend more time around them but stay away from anything that will end up going big. I know you can't stay away from a case, so these are my terms." He took this all in and finally calmed down and asked, "If I do this until a prototype is finished, you'll give it to me? But what happens if I say no?" She looked at him and said with a straight face "Yes, if you do this, I'll give you the prototype. If you say no, I'm going to take break for about a few months and you won't see me working on the antidote for a long time. I've been wanting to study fashion for awhile so I may do that with my given free time." Conan was shocked as well as Hakase and she could see that so she continued. "It's a take it or leave it offer, I will do what I set out to do, you know me well enough to know I mean what I say, so what will it be Kudo?" He thought and asked one more question, "What about the Detective Boys? They'll wonder why I don't have any gadgets." She answered "I'll explain to them that all your gadgets are being kept for maintenance by Hakase and not to mention anything about gadgets to you or to anyone while they aren't in your possession. They'll easily think you'll get jealous because they still have theirs and you have absolutely nothing." He nodded. Hakase couldn't hold his silence any longer and asked "Ai-kun, do you really want to do this bet? Shinichi-kun, are you really thinking about this?" "Yes Hakase, I want to do this bet to Kudo-kun, no question." "I am thinking, but seeing as her mind is set on it, I have no other option. This is about the antidote." Conan turned to Haibara and replied "As Agasa Hakase is a witness to this bet, I will officially agree."

-Flashback over-

"So for the past few days, I've been out of cases and it's been so annoying and aggravating. I've been able to read my mystery novels without interruption and fortunately, Oji-san hasn't had any major cases, just trailing cases and the other times he was with his friends but still it's not the same as being on a case. Even with the group, nothing happened while I was around. It was torture that I had to spend more time with them while off a case, but I did have fun playing soccer with them and actually being able to share my Holmes knowledge after a long time was kind of nice too. But still, I missed the cases and thrill of a case." He finished responding. "But why Kudo, you seriously had me going?" Heiji asked. "Simple, I was bored and also because today is April 1st." Heiji looked at him with a blank stare, and after a few seconds he realized what this day was. "You're telling me you did it because it's April Fools?" Heiji asked. Conan smiled and nodded. Heiji about to fume, but the relief sensation wouldn't let him, because he was glad his buddy was joking with him and that Kudo didn't have a memory loss or identity crisis or something like that, he was just glad that it was all a joke, a pure act that he fell for.

End

-Break-

 **Well, this concludes my first one-shot ever. It was originally for April Fools, but I ended up finishing the story late. Again I tell you, I am just a beginning writer and I hope to improve my writing, flow, detail, and dialogue. So maybe one day when I get better, I will fix this story and make it much better than it is now. Again I thank you for all who reviewed, liked and followed this one-shot, I am not sure if there are other stories similar to mine, if so I would like very much to read it. Thank you very much again for everything.**


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